aslope

/əˈsləʊp/

//əˈsləʊp// adj

"aslope" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“aslope” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Slanted, sloping.

Corpus desk

Index EN-aslope · aslope · English

aslope · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "A" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for aslope
PropertyValue
Headwordaslope
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/əˈsləʊp/
Letters6
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “aslope” in English

asloperanks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

aslope is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed /əˈsləʊp/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Slanted, sloping.".

No misspelling variants are generated for aslope in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English aslop, aslope (“at an angle or slant; aside”); further etymology uncertain, probably either: * from Old English āslopen (“slipped away”), the past participle of āslūpan (“to slip away”), from ā- (prefix meaning ‘away; from; off; out’) + … The correct English form is aslope, spelled A-S-L-O-P-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Slanted, sloping.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how aslope appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. VVhere Porters Hogſheads roll from Carts aſlope, / Or Brevvers dovvn ſteep Cellars ſtretch the Rope, / VVhere counted Billets are by Carmen toſt; / Stay thy raſh Steps, and vvalk vvithout the Poſt.
  2. [S]o / Do these upbear the little world below / Of Education,—Patience, Love, and Hope. / Methinks, I see them group'd in seemly show, / The straiten'd arms upraised, the palms aslope, / And robes that touching as adown they flow, / Distinctly blend, like snow emboss'd in snow.

Etymology

From Middle English aslop, aslope (“at an angle or slant; aside”); further etymology uncertain, probably either: * from Old English āslopen (“slipped away”), the past participle of āslūpan (“to slip away”), from ā- (prefix meaning ‘away; from; off; out’) + slūpan (“to glide, slip”) (from Proto-West Germanic *sleupan (“to move stealthily, creep, sneak”), from Proto-Germanic *sleupaną (“to move stealthily, creep, sneak”), probably either from Proto-Indo-European *slewbʰ- (“to glide, slide, slip”) or *slewp- (“to glide, slip”)); or * from Middle English a- + *slope (adjective). However, the Oxford English Dictionary notes that the adjective slope (now obsolete) is attested later than aslope and is probably an aphetic form of the latter. The adverb is more common than the adjective.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "aslope"?
"aslope" is spelled A-S-L-O-P-E. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈsləʊp/.
What does "aslope" mean?
As an adjective, "aslope" means: Slanted, sloping.
How do you pronounce "aslope"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "aslope" is /əˈsləʊp/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "aslope"?
From Middle English aslop, aslope (“at an angle or slant; aside”); further etymology uncertain, probably either: * from Old English āslopen (“slipped away”), the past participle of āslūpan (“to slip away”), from ā- (prefix meaning ‘away; from; off... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
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Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list